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2 Contents Press dom in 2014: Harsh Laws and Violence Drive Global Decline 1 Other Notable Developments in The Global Picture in Worst of the Worst 7 Regional Trends 9 Americas 9 Asia-Pacific 10 Eurasia 12 Europe 14 Middle East and North Africa 18 Sub-Saharan Africa 19 Conclusion 21 Rankings 22 Methodology 26 The extensive work undertaken to produce dom of the Press was made possible by the generous support of the Jyllands-Posten Foundation and the Hurford Foundation. dom House also gratefully acknowledges the contributions of the Lilly Endowment, the Schloss Family Foundation, the Stichting Democratie & Media, Press Unlimited, the Fritt Ord Foundation, the Reed Foundation, Leonard Sussman and the Sussman dom Fund, Ambassador Victor Ashe, and other private contributors. Research and editorial team Jennifer Dunham served as the project manager of dom of the Press Overall guidance for the project was provided by Arch Puddington, vice president for research, and Vanessa Tucker, vice president for analysis. on the cover Cover image by KAL. Extensive research, editorial, analytical, and administrative assistance was provided by Bret Nelson, Elen Aghekyan, and Tyler Roylance, as well as by Karin Deutsch Karlekar, Sarah Cook, Michael Johnson, Matthew Coogan, and Megan Schultz. We would also like to thank our consultant writers and advisers and other members of the project team for their contributions.

3 dom of the press 2015 Press dom in 2014 Harsh Laws and Violence Drive Global Decline by Jennifer Dunham, Bret Nelson, and Elen Aghekyan Conditions for the media deteriorated sharply in 2014, as journalists around the world faced mounting restrictions on the free flow of news and information including grave threats to their own lives. Governments employed tactics including arrests and censorship to silence criticism. Terrorists and other nonstate forces kidnapped and murdered journalists attempting to cover armed conflicts and organized crime. The wealthy owners who dominate private media in a growing number of countries shaped news coverage to support the government, a political party, or their own interests. And democratic states struggled to cope with an onslaught of propaganda from authoritarian regimes and militant groups. dom of the Press 2015, the latest edition of an annual report published by dom House since 1980, found that global press freedom declined in 2014 to its lowest point in more than 10 years. The rate of decline also accelerated drastically, with the global average score suffering its largest one-year drop in a decade. The share of the world s population that enjoys a press stood at 14 percent, meaning only one in seven people live in countries where coverage of political news is robust, the safety of journalists is guaranteed, state intrusion in media affairs is minimal, and the press is not subject to onerous legal or economic pressures. The steepest declines worldwide relate to two factors: the passage and use of restrictive laws against the press often on national security grounds and the ability of local and foreign journalists to physically access and report freely from a given country, including protest sites and conflict areas. Paradoxically, in a time of seemingly unlimited access to information and new methods of content delivery, more and more areas of the world are becoming virtually inaccessible to journalists. While there were positive developments in some countries, the dominant global trend was negative. The number of countries with significant improvements (8) was the lowest since 2009, while the number with significant declines (18) was the highest in 7 years. * The 18 countries and territories that declined represented a politically diverse cross-section including Greece, Hong Kong, Iceland, Serbia, and South Africa indicating that the global deterioration in press freedom is not limited to autocracies or war zones. Also featured among the major backsliders were Algeria, Azerbaijan, Egypt, Honduras, Libya, South Sudan, and Thailand. In a time of seemingly unlimited access to information and new methods of content delivery, more and more areas of the world are becoming virtually inaccessible to journalists. The nature of major changes over the past five years is also striking. Since 2010, the most significant score improvements have occurred in countries where the media environment had been among the worst in the world. Tunisia, with a gain of 37 points, not only registered the biggest improvement over this period, but was also the only country with large gains that * Significant gains or declines are defined as shifts of 3 or more points in a country s score, on a scale. 1

4 Press dom in 2014: Harsh Laws and Violence Drive Global Decline dom of the Press Methodology The dom of the Press report assesses the degree of media freedom in 199 countries and territories, analyzing the events and developments of each calendar year. Each country and territory receives a numerical score from 0 (the most free) to 100 (the least free), which serves as the basis for a status designation of, Partly, or Not. Scores are assigned in response to 23 methodology questions that seek to capture the varied ways in which pressure can be placed on the flow of objective information and the ability of media platforms whether print outlets, broadcast stations, news websites, blogs on public affairs, or social media that carry news content to operate freely and without fear of repercussions. Issues covered by the methodology include the legal and regulatory environment in which media operate; the degree of partisan control over news content; political influences on reporting and access to information; the public s ability to access diverse sources of information; violations of press freedom ranging from the murder of journalists and bloggers to other extralegal abuse and harassment; and economic pressures on media outlets and their means of distribution. The scores reflect not just government actions and policies, but also the behavior of the press itself in testing boundaries, as well as the influence of private owners, political or criminal groups, and other nonstate actors. For a more detailed explanation of the methodology and scoring process, see pp maintained a positive trajectory in While Myanmar and Libya have each earned net improvements of 21 points, both suffered score declines in the past year and remain in the Not category. In a disturbing trend, several countries with histories of more democratic practices have experienced serious deterioration. Greece has fallen by 21 points since 2010, as existing structural problems were exacerbated by the economic crisis and related political pressures. Large five-year drops were also recorded in Thailand (13 points), Ecuador (12), Turkey (11), Hong Kong (9), Honduras (7), Hungary (7), and Serbia (7). In 2014, influential authoritarian powers such as China and Russia maintained a tight grip on locally based print and broadcast media, while also seeking to control the more independent views provided either online or by foreign news sources. Beijing and Moscow in particular were more overt in their efforts to manipulate the information environment in regions that they considered to be within their sphere of influence: Hong Kong and Taiwan for the former, and Ukraine, Central Asia, and the Baltics for the latter. The year s notable improvements included three status changes, with Guinea-Bissau, Madagascar, and Ukraine moving from Not to Partly. Tunisia maintained its reputation as the success story of the Arab Spring, improving another 5 points in However, other countries recording gains either made modest, tentative improvements in the wake of civil strife as in Central African Republic and Somalia or featured authoritarian governments that have grown more secure and less violently oppressive in recent years, as in Zimbabwe. Increased use of restrictive laws Several countries in 2014 passed security or secrecy laws that established new limits on speech and reporting. After a coup in May, Thailand s military government suspended the constitution, imposed martial law, shut down media outlets, blocked websites, and severely restricted content. Aggressive enforcement of the country s lèse-majesté laws also continued in 2014, and after the coup alleged violators were tried in military courts. In Turkey, the government repeatedly sought to expand the telecommunications authority s power to block websites without a court order, though some of the more aggressive legal changes were struck down by the Constitutional Court. Other legislation gave the National Intelligence Organization (MİT) vast pow- 2

5 dom House ers of surveillance and unfettered access to virtually any information held by any entity in the country. The amendments also criminalized reporting on or acquiring information about MİT. A Russian law that took effect in August placed new controls on blogs and social media, requiring all sites with more than 3,000 visitors a day to register with the state telecommunications agency as media outlets. This status made them responsible for the accuracy of posted information, among other obligations. Detentions and closures under existing security or emergency laws also increased in Azerbaijan was one of the worst offenders, with nine journalists in prison as of December 1. Over the course of that month, the authorities detained prominent investigative journalist Khadija Ismayilova of U.S.-funded Radio Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), raided and closed RFE/ RL s offices in the country, and interrogated the service s local employees. A number of well-known media advocacy groups were also forced to close during the year. In Egypt, a court sentenced three Al-Jazeera journalists to seven or more years in prison on charges of conspiring with the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood to publish false news. The convictions followed a farcical trial in which prosecutors presented no credible evidence. While all three were freed or released on bail in early 2015, at least nine journalists remain in jail on terrorism charges or for covering the Brotherhood. Ethiopia s government stepped up its campaign against free expression in April 2014 by arresting six people associated with the Zone 9 blogging collective and three other journalists. In July, they were charged with inciting violence and terrorism. Myanmar, which had taken several positive steps in recent years, suffered declines in 2014 due in part to an increase in arrests and convictions of journalists. In July, four reporters and the chief executive of the Unity Weekly News were sentenced to 10 years in prison and hard labor, later reduced to seven years, under the colonialera Official Secrets Act for reporting on a possible chemical weapons facility. Such restrictive laws are not only utilized in authoritarian environments. Mexico s new telecommunications law drew widespread objections from press freedom advocates due to provisions allowing the government to monitor and shut down real-time blogging and posting during social protests. South African authorities expanded their use of the apartheid-era National Key Points Act to prevent investigative jour- Biggest Press dom Declines in Venezuela Turkey Serbia Peru Iraq Cambodia Myanmar Botswana Azerbaijan South Africa Iceland Honduras Hong Kong Greece Egypt South Sudan Thailand Libya

6 Press dom in 2014: Harsh Laws and Violence Drive Global Decline nalists from reporting on important sites or institutions, particularly when probing corruption by political figures. In South Korea, President Park Geun-hye s administration increasingly relied on the National Security Law to suppress critical reports, especially regarding the president s inner circle and the Sewol ferry disaster. Physical violence and inaccessible areas The world s growing number of areas that are effectively off limits for journalists include parts of Syria and Iraq controlled by Islamic State (IS) extremists, states in northeastern Nigeria where Boko Haram is active, much of conflict-racked Libya, and Egypt s restive Sinai Peninsula. In Mexico, Honduras, and other Central American countries, intimidation and violence against journalists continued to soar during the year, as gangs and local authorities sought to deter reporting on organized crime and corruption in their territory. Seventeen journalists were killed in Syria alone in 2014, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). The death toll, coupled with the high-profile murders of American freelance journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff by IS militants, served as a stark reminder that local reporters who make up the vast majority of the casualties and freelancers do not have the extensive security safeguards afforded to full-time staff at large news organizations like the New York Times. To help address the problem, major outlets and advocacy groups established global safety principles and practices in early While some parts of the world are rendered inaccessible mostly by chaotic violence, others are deliberately barred to most reporters by repressive governments. Prime examples include China s Tibet and Xinjiang regions, Tajikistan s Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region, Russian-occupied Crimea, and certain ethnic minority areas in Myanmar. Citizen journalists, activists, and ordinary residents have managed to disseminate some information about conditions in these regions, but it is no substitute for unfettered reporting by professionals, and it is often easier to send news to the outside world than to reach audiences within the affected area. Street protests, though less deadly than armed conflicts, frequently proved dangerous for reporters to cover in During the prodemocracy demonstrations that broke out in Hong Kong in September, journalists faced a sharp rise in violence, including multiple assaults on reporters near protest sites. In Venezuela, journalists became targets during clashes linked to the widespread social protests that swept the country in the first half of the year. Reporters in Brazil also encountered violence at protests before and during the World Cup; in February, a cameraman died after being hit in the head with an explosive. In Ukraine, in addition to four journalist deaths and other violence associated with the separatist conflict in the east, one journalist was killed and at least 27 others were injured at the height of confrontations between protesters and police in the capital in February. Pressure through ownership In Russia and Venezuela, the media sector is increasingly owned by the state, private-sector cronies of the political leadership, or business interests that depoliticize their outlets by suppressing content that is critical of the government. In July, Venezuela s oldest independent daily, El Universal, was sold to new owners. The move came on the heels of ownership changes at two other major private media companies in the country, Cadena Capriles and Globovisión. In all three cases, respected reporters have left or been suspended since the ownership changes, primarily due to shifts in the editorial line that affected news coverage. While somewhat more media diversity exists in countries like Turkey and Ecuador, political leaders have steadily tamed once-independent outlets, using various forms of pressure against private owners and creating media sectors that are firmly tilted in the ruling party s favor. In Greece, the new public broadcaster has faced allegations of political interference in hiring and editorial content. Hungary remained a country of concern in 2014, as the administration of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán continued to exert pressure on media owners to influence coverage. Dozens of media workers protested the dismissal of the editor in chief of Origo, a news website, after it published an article on alleged misuse of state funds. Increased use of propaganda by states and nonstate actors Among the most troubling trends identified in 2014 was the more active and aggressive use of propaganda often false or openly threatening to warp the media environment and crowd out authentic journalism. This phenomenon was especially pronounced in Russia, where state-controlled national television stations broadcast nonstop campaigns of demonization 4

7 dom House Countries with significant declines increasingly outnumber those with significant gains improved declined directed at the internal opposition, neighboring countries whose policies have displeased Moscow, and the broader democratic world. Russian media played a major role in preparing the Russian public for war with Ukraine. As Dmitriy Kiselyov, head of the Kremlin s international news enterprise, asserted in April 2014, Information wars have already become standard practice and the main type of warfare. The bombers are now sent in after the information campaign. Neighboring countries have grappled with the problem of Russian propaganda, in some cases resorting to censorship. Ukrainian authorities, facing a military invasion, suspended the retransmission of at least 15 Russian television channels by cable operators. Authorities in Lithuania, Latvia, and Moldova whose breakaway territory of Transnistria is supported by Moscow imposed suspensions or fines on some Russian stations for reasons including incitement to war, disseminating historical inaccuracy, and lack of pluralism of opinions in news content. The government of Estonia did not follow suit, instead approving the creation of a Russianlanguage public channel, set to launch in 2015, as a means of countering Kremlin disinformation with honest reporting. Latvia and Lithuania also signaled plans to expand Russian-language public programming. Like the Kremlin, China s Communist Party leaders used state-controlled media to propagate official views and vilify their perceived enemies. State outlets trumpeted the persona and slogans of President Xi Jinping while airing televised confessions and selfcriticisms by detained journalists, with both phenomena drawing comparisons to the Mao era. To ensure that all media toed the line, the party s propaganda The global average press freedom score has declined sharply since department issued almost daily directives ordering news outlets and websites to use only information from the official Xinhua News Agency for coverage of breaking developments. Propaganda is not used exclusively by national governments. Militant groups including IS have established sophisticated media operations with potential audiences around the world, taking advantage of popular social-media tools and even satellite television. Democratic governments have been hard pressed to combat messages that openly advocate violence without restricting privacy, freedom of expression, and access to information for their citizens

8 BY POPULATION S BY POPULATION WORLD: Press STATUS dom BY in POPULATION 2014: Harsh Laws and Violence Drive Global Decline WORLD: STATUS BY POPULATION t 67,000,667,000 % 3% e 3% 04,000,004,000 artly 25 artly 25 50% 50% GLOBAL: status by population Not 3,162,940,027 3,162,940,027 44% 44% Partly Partly 3,070,963,460 3,070,963,460 42% 42% 63 Partly Partly 71 32% 36% 32% 36% Not 65 Not 65 32% 32% 14% 14% 999,180, ,180,643 GLOBAL: status by country Total Total countries countries Other Notable Developments in 2014 In addition to those described above, four major phenomena stood out during the year: Hostile conditions for women journalists: Women journalists operated in an increasingly hostile environment in 2014, and the rapid expansion of Twitter and other social media as important tools for journalism has created new venues for harassment. This intimidation has proliferated and threatens to silence women s reporting on crucial topics including corruption, politics, and crime. Although journalists covering such topics have always been vulnerable, women now encounter particularly vicious and gender-specific attacks, ranging from smears and insults to graphic threats of sexual violence and the circulation of personal information. Turkish journalist Amberin Zaman described the wave of intimidation she has faced in recent years as a public lynching. The impact of the Ebola crisis: The Ebola epidemic in West Africa resulted in several restrictions on press freedom in 2014, although the three worst-affected countries each handled the crisis differently. In Liberia, emergency laws, shutdowns and suspensions of media outlets, and bans on coverage ostensibly designed to avoid the spread of panic and misinformation prevented the population from accessing critical information and aimed to hide the shortcomings of the government s response. In August, a reporter for FrontPage Africa was arrested while covering a protest against the state of emergency. In October, the government limited media access to health care facilities, requiring journalists to obtain explicit permission from the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare before conducting interviews or using recording equipment on clinic or hospital grounds. Sierra Leone imposed less onerous restrictions on the press, but nevertheless used emergency laws to arrest and detain journalists for critical reporting. In Guinea, a journalist and two other media workers were killed by local residents as they attempted to report on the crisis in a remote town, but the government did not unduly constrain the activities of the press during the year. Deterioration in the Balkans: A number of countries in the Western Balkans continued to exhibit a worrying pattern of press freedom violations in These media environments feature several common problems: the use of defamation and insult laws by politicians and businesspeople to suppress critical 6

9 dom House reporting; progovernment bias at public broadcasters; editorial pressure from political leaders and private owners that leads to self-censorship; harassment, threats, and attacks on journalists that go unpunished; and opaque ownership structures. Macedonia s score has declined 10 points in the past five years, making it the worst performer in the region. Several oppositionoriented outlets have been forced to close during this period, and journalist Tomislav Kezarovski remained in detention throughout 2014 on questionable charges that he revealed the identity of a protected witness in a murder case. In Serbia during the year, the administration of Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić sought to curb reporting on floods that hit the country in May and directed increasingly hostile rhetoric and harassment at independent journalists; such pressure allegedly motivated broadcasters to cancel major political talk shows. Conditions in Montenegro have deteriorated since Milo Đukanović returned to the premiership in 2012, with independent outlets such as Vjesti, Dan, and the Monitor suffering lawsuits, unprosecuted physical attacks, and hostile government rhetoric. Persistent concerns in the United States: The United States score fell by one point, to 22, due to detentions, harassment, and rough treatment of journalists by police during protests in Ferguson, Missouri. Meanwhile, press freedom advocates remained concerned about certain practices and policies of the federal government, including the Obama administration s relatively rigid controls on the information coming out of the White House and government agencies. Although the U.S. Justice Department said in December that it would no longer seek to compel New York Times journalist James Risen to reveal a source in a long-running case, the Obama administration has used the 1917 Espionage Act to prosecute alleged leaks of classified information eight times, more than all previous administrations combined. Revelations of surveillance that included the bulk collection of communications data by the National Security Agency (NSA) and the targeted wiretapping of media outlets continued to reverberate in 2014, as fears of monitoring and the aggressive prosecution of alleged leakers made journalists interactions with administration officials and potential sources more difficult. The Global Picture in 2014 Of the 199 countries and territories assessed for 2014 (two new territory reports, Crimea and Somaliland, were added), a total of 63 (32 percent) were rated, 71 (36 percent) were rated Partly, and 65 (32 percent) were rated Not. This balance marks a shift toward the Partly category compared with the edition covering 2013, which featured 63, 68 Partly, and 66 Not countries and territories. The report found that 14 percent of the world s inhabitants lived in countries with a press, while 42 percent had a Partly press and 44 percent lived in Not environments. The population figures are significantly affected by two countries China, with a Not status, and India, with a Partly status that together account for over a third of the world s more than seven billion people. The percentage of those enjoying a media in 2014 remained at its lowest level since 1996, when dom House began incorporating population data into the findings of the report. After a multiyear decline in the global average score that was interrupted by an improvement in 2011, there was a further decline of 0.74 points for 2014, bringing the figure to its lowest level since 1999 and marking the greatest year-on-year decline since All regions except sub-saharan Africa, whose average score improved slightly, experienced declines of varying degrees, with the Middle East and North Africa showing the largest net decline. In terms of thematic categories, the drop in the global average score was driven primarily by decline in the legal score, followed by the political score; the economic score showed the smallest amount of slippage. Worst of the Worst The world s 10 worst-rated countries and territories, with scores of between 90 and 100 points, were Belarus, Crimea, Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Syria, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. Crimea analyzed separately for the first time in the current edition and Syria joined the bottom-ranked cohort in In these settings, independent media are either nonexistent or barely able to operate, the press acts as a mouthpiece for the regime, citizens access to unbiased information is severely limited, and dissent is crushed through imprisonment, torture, and other forms of repression. Crimea became subject to Russian press laws after its occupation and annexation in early 2014, and its media faced restrictive regulations and widespread violence. Iran continues to earn its place among the Worst of the Worst as one of the world s leading jailers of journalists, including Washington Post correspondent Jason Rezaian, who has been detained without charge since July

11 dom House Regional Trends Americas EURASIA: STATUS BY POPULATION EURASIA: STATUS BY POPULATION AMERICAS: STATUS BY POPULATION AMERICAS: STATUS BY POPULATION Violence, Intimidation Behind Downward Trajectory ASIA-PACIFIC: STATUS BY PO ASIA-PACIFIC: STATUS BY PO As journalists faced violence and intimidation from both government authorities and criminal elements, several Not countries in the Americas, including Ecuador, Not Honduras, 235,599,000Mexico, Peru, and Venezuela, received their 82% worst 82% press freedom scores in over a decade. The regional average score fell to its lowest level of the past five years, with declines across the legal, political, and economic categories. americas: status by population Partly Partly 413,182, ,182,000 43% 43% 367,630,951 38% 367,630,951 38% Not Not 1,903,336,027 48% 1,903,336,027 48% Partly Partly 1,897,170 1,897,170 47% 47% The overall figures for the Americas are significantly influenced by the open media environments of North America and much of the Caribbean, which tend to Partly offset the less 18% rosy picture in Central and South America. 51,795,000 Partly In Latin 18% America, meaning the Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking 51,795,000 parts of the region, only three (15 0% percent) 0 0% of the countries were rated, and just 2 percent 0 of the population lived in media environments. Despite the diplomatic opening Partly 3 between 0 the United Partly States and Cuba and the resulting 23% 3 0% release 0 of over 50 political 23% prisoners in late December, 0% journalists were still behind bars during 2014, and official censorship remained pervasive, leaving Cuba as the worst performer in the region with a score of 91. Total countries Total Mexico, already suffering from endemic violence that makes it one countries of the 13 most dangerous places in the world to be a journalist, received 13 its lowest score in over a decade falling two points to 63 after the passage of a new law that allows the government to track mobiletelephone users and monitor or shut down telecommunications during protests. Not In addition, 10a more onerous registration process has Not made 77% it more 10 difficult for 77% Not 185,296,000 Not 185,296,000 19% 19% americas: status by country Partly 15 Partly 43% 15 43% Total countries Total countries Not 5 15 Not 14% 5 43% 15 14% 43% Partly 13 Partly 32.5% % 5 187, , Total countries Total countries N N 9 MIDDLE EAST: STATUS BY POPULATION SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA: STATUS BY POPULATION WORLD: STATUS BY PO

12 Press dom in 2014: Harsh Laws and Violence Drive Global Decline community radio stations to obtain licenses. In Ecuador, hostile rhetoric from the government combined with pervasive legal harassment of journalists and media outlets led to a two-point decline, to 64. The enforcement of the 2013 Communication Law, whose controversial provisions included the creation of two powerful regulatory bodies, added to an environment marked by self-censorship and intimidation. Having been subject to fines and sanctions and publicly denounced by officials, several major outlets reduced the frequency of their production and distribution, modified their editorial lines, or closed entirely, decreasing media diversity. The relationship between the government and critical press outlets in Argentina remained tense in Although journalists reported an opening in which some administration officials gave interviews to critical outlets, the threat of harsh legal penalties persisted. Juan Pablo Suárez, editor of the online daily Última Hora, was charged with inciting collective violence and terrorizing the population after he refused to hand over footage of a police officer being arrested. Brazil s media face enduring threats from violence and impunity as well as judicial censorship. Four journalists were killed in 2014, and several more were attacked while covering protests against inflation, government performance, and World Cup expenditures. Meanwhile, courts continued to issue censorship orders, fines, and jail sentences to critical journalists and bloggers. Significant gains and declines: Honduras s score declined from 64 to 68 due to the filing of sedition charges against a reporter covering a political dispute and the passage of a new secrecy law, which is currently suspended. Furthermore, official censorship combined with media owners nearly unconditional support for the government, stifling critical journalism and adversely affecting Honduras s media diversity. Journalists continued to face intimidation and deadly violence in Peru s score declined from 44 to 47 due to an increase in death threats and violence against journalists, ongoing impunity for past crimes, and a lack of political will to address the problem. Venezuela s score declined from 78 to 81 due to an increase in the number of threats and physical attacks against the local and foreign press, which hampered their ability to cover the news freely. The transparency of media ownership structures was lacking, and state-exacerbated economic problems, including high inflation and difficulties obtaining foreign currency for purchasing newsprint, have had an adverse effect on the financial viability of print media. Some outlets laid off workers and struggled to secure credit to fill financial gaps. Asia-Pacific Declines in East and Southeast Asia The Asia-Pacific region features considerable subregional diversity. The Pacific Islands, Australasia, and parts of East Asia have some of the best-ranked media environments in the world, while conditions in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and other parts of East Asia are significantly worse. Asia includes the world s worst-rated country, North Korea (97 points), as well as several other highly restrictive media environments, such as China, Laos, and Vietnam. These settings feature extensive state and party control of the press. Thailand tied with Libya for the greatest net decline (11 points) in 2014 as a result of the May coup d état. The military junta, known as the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), suspended the constitution and imposed martial law, removing legal protections for journalists. Multiple radio and television stations were shut down, the media were prohibited from covering opposition members, and journalists frequently faced attacks and arbitrary detention. China, still home to the world s most sophisticated censorship apparatus, declined from 84 to 86 points, marking the country s worst score since the 1990s. During 2014, propaganda authorities tightened control over liberal media outlets and alternative channels of news dissemination. Previously existing space for investigative journalism and politically liberal commentary 10

13 dom House AMERICAS: STATUS BY BY POPULATION ASIA-PACIFIC: STATUS BY BY POPULATION EUROPE: STATUS BY BY POPU shrank noticeably, continuing a trend of ideological discipline that began when Xi Jinping assumed the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party in For the first time Partly in several years, professional 367,630,951 journalists from established 413,182,000 news outlets were subjected 38% to long-term detention 43% and imprisonment alongside freelancers, online activists, and ethnic minority reporters. New regulations intensified ideological requirements for journalist accreditation and restricted reporters ability to publish articles in foreign and Hong Kong based news outlets, leading to the firing of several journalists during the year. A crackdown on social-media platforms Not that began 185,296,000 in 2013 with increased restrictions on the prominent 19% 19% Sina Weibo microblogging service expanded in 2014 to Tencent s WeChat instant-messaging program, further limiting the ability of ordinary users and journalists to share uncensored information. Asia-Pacific: status by population Not 1,903,336,027 48% Partly 1,897,170,460 47% 5% 5% 187,325, ,012,000 66% Beijing s influence over Hong Kong was also felt during Partly the year, as foreign and local companies with mainland Chinese business interests felt compelled to pull 43% advertisements from news outlets that were critical of the central government. The website of Apple Daily, a popular tabloid that was sympathetic to prodemocracy protesters, suffered several major cyberattacks in 2014, including one of Total the largest recorded denial-ofservice attacks to date. countries Press freedom in Taiwan was also negatively affected by 35 the attack, as Apple Daily s Taiwan edition remained inaccessible to some overseas readers for nearly two months. Asia-PACIFIC: status by country Partly % 35% Total countries 40 Partly % Not 2% Tota countr 42 In Afghanistan, there was an increase in attacks against Not media workers 5 as security in the country began to 14% deteriorate following the withdrawal 43% of international combat troops. The media in Pakistan faced greater editorial pressure from the military and Not % SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA: STATUS BY BY POPULATION WORLD: STATUS BY BY POPULATION 11

14 Press dom in 2014: Harsh Laws and Violence Drive Global Decline partisan groups, exacerbating an already challenging and dangerous environment for journalists and pushing the country s score to its lowest level since India, the world s largest democracy, achieved another peaceful transfer of power through elections in 2014, yet its press freedom score declined to its lowest level in over a decade due to an increase in the use of defamation cases against journalists and a higher level of self-censorship caused by editorial interference from media owners in the lead-up to the elections. Significant gains and declines: Cambodia s score declined from 66 to 69 due to the high level of self-censorship by Khmerlanguage journalists, the lack of access to a diversity of viewpoints in Khmer-language media, and an increase in violence against journalists in Hong Kong s score declined from 37 to 41 due to a surge in the number of violent attacks against journalists and other media workers, both during the prodemocracy protests and in retaliation for reporting; impunity for the organizers of such attacks; and new financial burdens on some media as companies felt pressure to pull advertising from outlets that were critical of Beijing. Myanmar s score declined from 70 to 73, reversing a three-year trend of improvements, as journalists faced an increased threat of arrests, prosecutions, and closures of media outlets. Many journalists were arrested and received prison terms, and foreign journalists encountered harsher visa restrictions. Thailand s score declined from 64 to 75 due to the suspension of the constitution and the imposition of martial law by the NCPO. The military government shut down privately owned television and radio stations, which were only allowed to reopen after content restrictions were put in place; used regulatory bodies to monitor media and control content; and prohibited interviews with opposition politicians, activists, and dissidents. The junta was also accused of arbitrarily detaining journalists without access to legal counsel, amid allegations of torture. Eurasia Shrinking Space for Dissent The Eurasia region s average score remained the worst in the world in 2014, with declines in key countries and the addition of a separate assessment for Crimea driving the figure sharply downward. It is notable that four of the 10 worst press freedom environments in the world Belarus, Crimea, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan are found in Eurasia. The most dramatic change in the region occurred in Ukraine, which moved from Not to Partly. The fall of President Viktor Yanukovych s authoritarian government led to decreases in political pressure on state media and hostility toward independent voices. However, these gains were partly offset by the effects of the conflict in the country s eastern regions, which created extensive dangers and obstacles for journalists. At least five journalists were killed in Ukraine in 2014, including one who died during the Euromaidan protests in Kyiv. The Russian government tightened its grip on news and information in an already constricted media environment. Authorities used a mixture of legislative changes, economic pressure, and strident propagan- da especially regarding the conflict in Ukraine to achieve this end, suppressing independent reporting and deploying state-controlled outlets to attack domestic dissent and foreign adversaries. Under Russian occupation, Crimea s once-pluralistic media environment was battered by the closure and blocking of Ukrainian outlets and the imposition of restrictive Russian media regulations. There were also numerous incidents of intimidation and violence, contributing to an exodus of journalists from Crimea and perilous conditions for those who stayed. In Azerbaijan, the government unleashed a major crackdown on independent media, employing threats, raids, restrictive laws, and prosecutions. Journalists and bloggers faced fabricated charges and arbitrary detention, and at least eight remained in prison at year s end, making Azerbaijan the worst jailer of journalists in Eurasia. Economic and political pressures, including the freezing of assets and intimidation, led to the closure of multiple organizations that support journalists rights, among them the Media Rights 12

15 dom House EURASIA: STATUS BY BY POPULATION AMERICAS: STATUS BY B Institute and the local offices of the international advocacy group IREX. Authorities also raided and closed the Azerbaijan bureau of RFE/RL, one of the strongest independent outlets available in the country. Moldova, which took another step closer to the European Union after signing an Association Agreement in June, remained a country of particular concern in In addition to problematic regulatory decisions, media ownership is concentrated and opaque, and the year s parliamentary elections, along with the crisis in Ukraine, fueled more partisan news coverage. Significant gains and declines: Azerbaijan s score declined from 84 to 87 due to the government s heavy-handed attempts to punish independent journalists through arrest, imprisonment, physical intimidation, and verbal harassment. The government also used raids and arbitrary criminal investigations to impede the operations of or close multiple media organizations. eurasia: status by population Not 235,599,000 82% Partly 51,795,000 0% 0% 00 eurasia: status by country Partly 3 23% 18% 0 0% Partly 413,182,000 43% Not 185,296,000 19% Partly % Ukraine s score improved from 63 to 58 and its status improved from Not to Partly due to a number of positive changes in the media environment after the collapse of the Yanukovych government, despite a rise in violence against journalists associated with the Euromaidan protests and the subsequent conflict in eastern Ukraine. The level of government hostility and legal pressure on the media decreased, as did political influence on state-owned outlets. There were also improvements to the law on access to information and in the autonomy of the broadcasting regulator. Total countries 13 Not % Not 5 14% Tota count MIDDLE EAST: STATUS BY BY POPULATION SUB-SAHARAN AFR

16 Press dom in 2014: Harsh Laws and Violence Drive Global Decline TUS BY POPULATION BY POPULATION ree e 5 Total ntries untries ,630, ,630,951 38% 38% % 43% Europe ASIA-PACIFIC: STATUS BY POPULATION ASIA-PACIFIC: STATUS BY POPULATION Fraying at the Edges Not Not Partly Partly Europe boasts a concentration of 1,897,170,460 high-performing 1,897,170,460 countries, including Norway and 47% 47% Sweden, the world s top-ranked states with overall scores of 10. These 1,903,336,027 countries 1,903,336,027 provide ample space for independent, diverse voices, 48% 48% and journalists rarely face intimidation or physical attacks. However, they and other high-ranking European nations have struggled in recent years to regulate hate speech without damaging freedom of expression. Although Europe retains the highest level of press freedom in the world, its regional average 5% 5% score declined for a second consecutive year 187,325,692 in Over 187,325,692 the past decade, incremental erosion of the legal and economic environments, as well as interference with the ability of journalists to cover the news in person, have given Partly Partly Europe the world s second-largest net decline since 2004, after Eurasia % 32.5% 35% 35% Greece experienced yet another year of political interference and lack of transparency at the new public broadcaster, New Hellenic Radio, Internet, and Television (NERIT). Total Changes Total to broadcasting legislation further barred countries countries the media market to new entrants, which are already constrained by the government s refusal to issue new licenses. Also in 2014, DIGEA, a company whose shareholders include major private channels, secured a monopoly on digital broadcast transmissions through a tailored competition. Not Not % 32.5% 14 EUROPE: STATUS BY POPULATION EUROPE: STATUS BY POPULATION EUROPE: status by population 407,012, ,012,000 66% 66% EUrOPE: status by country Not Not 1 1 2% 2% Partly Partly % 29% Partly Partly Total Total countries countries ,147, ,147,000 21% 21% Not Not 77,193,000 77,193,000 13% 13% % 69%

17 dom House Among other problems in Hungary, RTL Klub, one of the two biggest private television stations, was disproportionately affected by an advertising tax. However, a proposed internet tax, which would have levied a charge against data transferred online, was defeated in October after opponents mounted large-scale demonstrations. Political and economic pressures also played a role in a score decline for Iceland in The state s dominant position in the broadcast market and tighter control of the public broadcaster, Ríkisútvarpið (RÚV), have weakened the independence of the media sector, as has editorial interference from private owners. Defamation remains a criminal offense in Iceland, despite the government s recent efforts to make the country an international haven for critical voices. Expansive national security laws remained an issue of concern in the United Kingdom following revelations of wide-ranging surveillance by the Government Communications Headquarters and a raid on the newsroom of the Guardian newspaper in In France, the far-right National Front party continued to deny access to the investigative outlet Mediapart; the year also featured the removal of journalists from political events, the harassment and intimidation of journalists at protests, and cyberattacks on news websites. The Turkish media environment continued to deteriorate as the government moved more aggressively to close the space for dissent. In addition to enacting new legislation that expanded both government powers for website blocking and the surveillance capability of the intelligence service, officials detained prominent journalists from the newspaper Zaman and the Samanyolu Broadcasting Group which were largely critical of the government and reported on high-level corruption on charges of establishing an armed terrorist organization. Significant gains and declines: Greece s score declined from 46 to 51 because of further government and partisan interference in the media, as seen in restrictive legislative changes to the broadcast market, the creation of a monopoly on digital transmissions through a flawed tender, and politically biased news coverage surrounding elections. Iceland s score declined from 12 to 16 due to political interference with the work of journalists, who face the threat of criminal defamation charges and the possibility of retaliatory dismissal by employers. Partisanship affects the private media, and the state has exerted increasing influence on the media sector through its dominance in the broadcast market and tighter editorial control of the public broadcaster. Serbia s score declined from 37 to 40 due to increased government harassment of journalists and restrictions on their work, as well as a decrease in the diversity of media after the cancellation of major political talk shows. Turkey s score declined from 62 to 65 due to a number of legislative changes and continuing state efforts to influence reporting through intimidation and economic incentives. New laws restricted the freedom of journalists to report on national security and empowered the intelligence service to access a wide range of information without oversight, while amendments to the internet law increased authorities power to block online content. 15

18 dom of the press 2015 Partly Not

19 freedomhouse.org 17

20 0 Partly 3 Partly 23% 3 23% 0 0% 0 0% P Total countries Total countries Middle East and North Africa After historic gains in the Middle East in 2011, only one country has continued to make progress toward fulfilling the promise of the Arab Spring. Tunisia registered the best score of any Arab country in over a decade, although it remained Partly. Conversely, Egypt and Libya, two other countries that saw dramatic improvements in 2011, maintained a pattern of backsliding. Egypt s score of 73 is its worst in 11 years, marking not only the reversal of gains it made following the ouster of longtime dictator Hosni Mubarak, but also a regression toward the most repressive years of the Mubarak era. Libya s score also continued to drop as a civil war affected the post-qadhafi media environment. Not 10 Not 77% 10 77% Tunisia Stands Out Amid Violence, MIDDLE EAST: Repression STATUS BY POPULATION MIDDLE EAST: STATUS BY POPULATION Middle east and north africa: status by population Not 386,849,000 Not 93% 386,849,000 93% No N The long-running conflict in Syria exacerbated conditions in that country and contributed indirectly to declines in Iraq, including through the rise of IS. The war also put pressure on Lebanon, whose score reached a five-year low of 55 due to a marked increase in libel cases against journalists in Penalties included jail time and exorbitant fines, and many publications faced multiple suits from the same aggrieved party. Moreover, rulings from Lebanon s Court of Publications during the year indicated a reflexive bias against the media and political motives behind many cases. While Israel remains the region s only media environment, the score for the West Bank and Gaza Strip declined by two points to 84 as a result of the war in Gaza. Not only were members of the media killed and injured during the conflict between Israel and Hamas militants, but both Israeli and Palestinian authorities restricted journalists movement in Gaza and the West Bank. In the Persian Gulf, Qatar passed a new cybercrime law that included onerous penalties for false news 19,620,000 Partly 19,620,000 Partly Partly 3 Partly 16% 3 16% 8,208,000 5% 2% 8,208,000 5% 2% Middle east and north africa: Status by country 1 5% 1 5% Total countries Total countries Not 15 Not 79% 15 79% 18

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